Uni = the pits

Lazy night dinner!

You have just come home from work, school, play and have a bunch of things to catch up on/ don't want to do anything but watch TV, but want to eat real food, as opposed to fake/ toast. 

Solution, plastic bag marinade! 

Of course you can make any marinade you want, all of which are super delicious and can be made with a number of left over ingredients, but last week I surprised myself with a really simple Teriyaki marinade. 

1 part soy sauce, 1 part caster sugar, and 1 part mirin seasoning  the recipe is nearly impossible to get wrong!

I had a left over fillet of salmon in the freezer so took it out to defrost when I got home. After it had defrosted I mixed 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, sugar, and mirin seasoning in a bowl until the sugar disolved and popped the marinade into the resealable bag with the fish and let it marinate. 

The recipe I found here, indicated you should marinate for at least 30 minutes but I got super busy and forgot about it and so pulled it out of the fridge the next day. Then all you have to do is bake for 5 minutes! The benefit of leaving it over night also meant I didn't need to open the oven and brush the marinade.

Simple, easy, and delicious!

Of course you can substitute the salmon for anything, chicken, beef, etc. Harry ended up making the same and only marinating it for 20 minutes with a minute steak and had the same delicious result. 

If you don't have mirin seasoning, I heard on the grape vine that you can either put more sugar or leave it out entirely for a saltier marinade. 

We also quickly sauteed some zuchini and kale that was about to turn, with a little oil and chilli, as a side. Yum!

Slurpeeees!

Today is BYO mug day at 7/11s in Sydney! Get on it! xx

$10 Puff Pizza!

It's been too long between drinks - I'm sorry! But finally here is another installment of the $10 food challenge!

So, I know what your thinking, everyone knows pizza can be under $10 - especially considering my rather leniant rules, but does everyone know you can make an exciting puff pastry show off pizza for under $10? They do now!

This pizza recipe is awesome, because not only is it super cheap and easy but the flexibility of ingredients makes it timeless! In compiling my own I mainly used left overs but if you went out and did a shop it wouldn't be too much anyway. 

Toppings are always a personal thing but I have outlined my recipe below, the main thing to buy then is Frozen puff pastry. Each sheet of pastry makes more than enough for one and plenty for two too! So for a pack of 10 sheets for $6 or less if you get home brand, the pizza base is probably as much as if you were to make your own... but so much less messy!  Depending on the toppings you pick an average toppinged pizza would cost about $4. 

Balsamic Mushroom and Fetta Puff Pizza

For this particular recipe I sauteed my mushrooms and red onion with a touch of balsamic just keep in mind the aroma is pungent so maybe do this with all windows and doors open.   

Ingredients:

2 sheet of puff pastry (thawed)

1 - 1/2 (depending on taste) red onion sliced 

200 g of mixed mushrooms sliced

25 g of Fetta

Tomatoe paste

Tomatoe

Mixed Greens

Some melted butter or eggwash

Balsamic vinegar

Method:

1. Caramalise the onion in oil until wilted. 
2. Add the mushrooms and a swig of balsamic vinegar (it would be ideal to use the thicker vinegars but invariably they are more expensive) also remember about the smell! 
3. Cook off the mushrooms for about 5 minutes and let cool slightly so they don't eat through the pastry. 
4. With a fork poke holes into the pastry where you will place your toppings, leave a border of about 2cm around the edge to ensure you get some delicious crust!
5. Pile on toppings like a regular pizza! I only put a teeny bit of tomatoe paste as the "dough" will be less bready so the sauce isn't really necessary. 
6. Use melted butter or an eggwash to rub on the perimeter of the pizza for that exquisite golden brown look!
7. Cook in an oven as per packet instructions or until the pastry is golden brown. 
8. Remove from oven and add mixed greens! Voila your puff pizza is ready!

Something I learnt from this process is to put a sheet of baking paper under the sheet of pastry while you thaw it out. That way you can put the pastry on the over tray, fork it, add you toppings, cut it AND it won't stick to the tray - hooray! I repeat baking paper, not tin foil. 

This pizza is perfect for parties too, you can serve it up with any toppings you like cut it into smaller squares (probably 6 from one sheet of pastry) and pass it around as a nibblies - yum! 

Friday fun day!

Can't rave on enough about my surprisingly delicious lunch from the Annandale Hotel! Great Thai food at the back restaurant 'Wok 'N Roll!'

Just about to head off to fancy girl's night out at ucello! Full of fabulousness and sequins! Yay! xx